HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

THURSDAY, 16 APRIL 2020

SECRETARY-GENERAL'S POLICY BRIEF ON IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON CHILDREN
At 1 p.m. today, the Secretary-General will launch a policy brief looking at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children, which highlights the risks they face. The report looks at issues such as education and food security.
The policy brief also addresses issues regarding safety, including domestic violence, abuse and the growing risks children are facing as they spend more time online.
 
YEMEN
Martin Griffiths, the Special Envoy for Yemen, briefed the Security Council, remotely, from Jordan. He told them that an opportunity has emerged to bring peace to Yemen, when the arrival of the pandemic threatens to bring deeper and more widespread suffering to the people. He said there cannot be a more timely moment for the two parties to commit to silencing the guns and ending the conflict through a peaceful, political solution.
Following the call of the Secretary-General for a cease-fire, Mr. Griffiths presented proposals to the two parties - the first on a nation-wide ceasefire agreement and the second on key humanitarian and economic measures. Over the past two weeks, he said, he has been in constant negotiations with the Parties on the texts of these agreements and expects them to agree and formally adopt these agreements in the immediate future. Mr. Griffiths added that Yemen cannot face two fronts at the same time: a war and a pandemic.
The Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mark Lowcock, also briefed the Security Council and said that more than five years of war have severely degraded Yemen’s health infrastructure, exhausted people’s immune systems and increased acute vulnerabilities. As a result, he said, epidemiologists warn that COVID-19 in Yemen could spread faster, more widely and with [more] deadlier consequences than in many other countries.
Mr. Lowcock said that the UN is working with all stakeholders to take precautions to reduce the risk of the virus while maintaining life-saving assistance. He warned that funding for aid operations is running out. Of the UN’s 41 major programmes, 31 will start closing down in the next few weeks without additional funds.
 
COVID-19/ U.N. RESPONSE
This morning, Dr. Tedros, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), along with the Executive Director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, spoke with the UN Resident Coordinators leading our work in 162 countries and territories to help governments combat the spread of the virus.
Dr. Tedros stressed that coordination at the country level now is the most important part of our work, adding that he was proud that the whole UN system is coming together to support countries and leave no one behind.
For her part, the head of UN Women emphasized the need to address the needs of women because they are disproportionately affected by the pandemic. She noted that 70 per cent of women in developing countries are in the informal sector and that women who work in hospitals are infected at higher rates than men.
She also reiterated how the pandemic could reverse the limited progress made on gender equality and women’s rights, including increased rates of violence against women.
 
TOURISM
A report published yesterday by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) shows that as of April 6th, 96 per cent of all worldwide destinations have introduced travel restrictions in response to the pandemic.
The Secretary-General of the UN WTO, Zurab Pololikashvili, said that the pandemic has impacted travel and tourism like no other event in history. He added that with tourism suspended, the benefits the sector brings are under threat and millions of jobs could be lost.
More information is available on their website.
 
BARBADOS/ EASTERN CARIBBEAN STATES
The UN team in 10 countries – including Barbados and other countries in the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States – has put together a Preparedness and Response Plan for Eastern Caribbean nations.
All of these countries have confirmed cases of the virus, and the new plan addresses immediate health needs and the broader social and economic impacts of the pandemic, many of these economies being small, vulnerable and heavily dependent on tourism.
The UN system has set up an inter-agency task force – comprising the Pan-American Health Organization, the UN Development Programme, UNICEF and the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and under the guidance of the UN Resident Coordinator. This is to boost our efficiency in purchasing quality products at better prices, including personal protective equipment, testing kits, and ventilators.
 
NIGERIA
And an update from Nigeria, where our colleagues tell us that they received a delivery of vital supplies to fight the pandemic.
The supplies, which were sent on a flight funded by the company APM Terminals, include 10,000 testing kits, 15 oxygen concentrators, personal protective equipment, and vaccines.
More supplies are expected to be delivered in Nigeria in a UN flight in the coming days.
 
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
With over 260 cases of COVID-19 now confirmed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Humanitarian Coordinator, David McLachlan-Karr, has allocated US $10 million from the country’s Humanitarian Fund to support joint preparedness and response activities.
The funds will be used to raise awareness about the pandemic in vulnerable communities. They will also support efforts to foster community participation and engagement in prevention activities, as well as to facilitate access to sanitation infrastructure in areas affected by the disease.
Activities primarily targeted with this new funding will include health, water, hygiene and sanitation, as well as protection.
 
BURKINA FASO 
In Burkina Faso, where a fragile national health care system and massive displacements are increasing the risks of the spread of the virus. Almost 1 in 4 health centres (that’s 24 per cent) is either closed or not functioning in areas with humanitarian needs related to the conflict and other factors. 
As a reminder, almost 800,000 people are currently displaced in Burkina Faso, and this is challenging epidemic control and response measures. 
The UN’s Humanitarian Country Team is engaging with the Government to ensure the safety and continuity of the humanitarian response. 
The Central Emergency Response Fund has earmarked $ 4.1 million for the country, from the global COVID CERF allocation of $ 75 million, announced on March 25th.
Burkina Faso is the West African country the most impacted by the pandemic, with 8 out of 13 regions affected. As of today, 542 cases have been confirmed and 32 deaths recorded.
 
ROHINGYA
At the request of the Government of Bangladesh, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and its partners there are currently providing shelter and assistance to close to 400 Rohingya refugee survivors who disembarked from a boat in the Bay of Bengal this morning.
The Refugee Agency says it heard from those onboard the ship that some 30 more refugees may have passed away at sea as the boat ran out of food, water and fuel during a nearly two-month long journey at sea.
The survivors, who include a large number of women and children, are all in weak physical condition, with many dehydrated and malnourished and in need of immediate medical attention.
Despite some media reports claiming that the group may be infected with the COVID-19  virus, there is currently no evidence to substantiate these reports.
 
ABYEI
The UN Interim Security Force for Abyei has strongly condemned the attack by an organized Misseriya armed group on Mabok village in southern Abyei on April 13th. Four Ngok Dinka people were killed and two children kidnapped, while some 50 homes were burnt down.
The Mission is saddened that the recent attack happened despite its efforts to promote peaceful coexistence between the communities. The UN Mission had recently facilitated two meetings between the Ngok Dinka and Misseriya traditional leaders on the 16th of March and 9th of April to de-escalate tensions between the two groups.
More worrisome, the Mission said, is that this attack happened at a time when the world is united to fight the virus and cautioned that it could reverse the gains made over the past few years in the peace process in Abyei.
 
FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION
So far, 81 Member States have paid their 2020 budget dues in full.  We want to say thank you and welcome the latest payment - by Brunei Darussalam. They paid $695,334.
 
ANN CHARLES
And I’m sorry to end on a sad note.
In this virtual room, I can’t see all your faces together, but if I could right now, I’d look to my right to see one more time the seat where our friend and colleague Ann Charles would sit.
I am sad to report that Ann, who had been a long-time reporter for the Baltic Review, has passed away.  As you might know, she had been part of the UN press corps since 1988, focusing on human rights, press freedoms, the treatment of minorities and other subjects concerning the Baltic states.
Just recently, in 2018, she was awarded the Silver Medal of Merit from Vytautas Magnus University in Lithuania, for her contributions to the country.
I will miss seeing her ready smile and her friendly face as she brightened up the press briefing room and our lives.
We send our condolences to her family.